This invention relates generally to the field of remote management of computer systems, and more particularly to remotely managing computer systems with an independent computing device which is contained in or coupled to a host computer system.
Many organizations are now very dependent on computers for the management of their data. Because of the mission critical nature of computer applications like web servers, accounting, point of sale, inventory and customer information, even small organizations need their computer systems to be running virtually all the time. Although organizations desire to maintain their computer systems 24 hours a day, it can be difficult to continually have computer technicians on-site round the clock. There are also many small businesses which do not have a full time technician on-site to service their computer systems.
In other situations, the computer hardware is remotely located in an area which is hard to access. For example, a server may be locked into a physically secure room or located at a third party site such as an Internet provider, telecommunications carrier, or the telephone utility. When the server or computer is located at a third party site, it is difficult to access because of its remote location and the permission needed to access the physical computer box.
It is not uncommon for companies to employ a technician at a central site which services a number of other geographical sites owned by the company. In these situations, it is difficult for the technician to be on-site when a computer problem arises. The remote technician would like to be able to access the remote computers and repair any problems without actually physically visiting the machine. In these situations, there may even be a user who can sit at the keyboard and enter commands as delivered over the phone. The drawback to this type of arrangement is that the user must be computer literate or the technician cannot communicate the required changes to them over the phone.
When a computer system does not respond to the needs of computer users, they will normally call the technician and describe the problem. Typically, the user does not know what is wrong but they inform the technician that they cannot connect to the Internet, the server is not working or that they cannot send e-mail. If the technician is on-site, it is a simple matter to access the computer console and fix the problem. When the technician is off-site or the problem occurs after regular working hours, the technician will have to travel to the site and then correct the problem. The travel required can be a serious inconvenience, especially if a problem occurs in the middle of the night. Sometimes the technician will be paged by a warning device which cannot tell what the problem actually is.
Devices do exist which allow for some remote operation and diagnosis of computers, but these devices have inevitably been tied into the overall functioning of the computer. In other words, if the operating system software has crashed, the telephone lines are down, or there is no power then the diagnostic system will not work. An example of this is U.S. Pat. No. 5,455,933 to Schieve which is a Circuit and Method for Remote Diagnosis of Personal Computers. The Schieve system requires the presence and proper functioning of the PC""s modem for remote diagnosis to take place. This modem is coupled to the CPU via a universal asynchronous receive/transmit module (UART). If the power to the motherboard is gone, the modem software has been corrupted, or the telephone lines are disabled then no contact can be made with the computer.
Other systems such as U.S. Pat. No. 5,347,646 to Hirosawa continually diagnose the state of the computer and then send a message to the technician if there is a problem. Specifically, Hirosawa supervises the data stream on the data transmission/reception signal line existing between the computer system and the master console. An error in the system is messaged through the land based public telephone line. A similar device, U.S. Pat. No. 5,732,268 to Bizzarri, teaches extended BIOS to establish remote communication for diagnostics. In the Bizzarri invention, if there is a problem in the booting sequence then the BIOS automatically establish a communication link through a modem or a local area network (LAN) connection. Bizzarri has the problem that without power to the computer, then there is no notification. In addition, if there is a problem with the LAN, ISDN, or the land based telephone lines then no notification will be made. Since Bizzarri is focused on BIOS control, it offers no insight into the state of a partially disabled operating system.
Another disadvantage with devices that send notifications to a system administrator is the messages are usually quite cryptic. Usually, the user must physically access the computer to diagnose the problem. These types of devices are akin to an alarm system. The system administrator knows there is a problem but does not necessarily know what it is or how to fix it. Even if an error message is sent, diagnosis will be required. Diagnostic notification triggered by preprogrammed events usually assumes that the operator knows what problems will occur. In contrast, computer failures often manifest themselves in new and unforeseen ways. Additionally, event/alarm systems are frequently affected by the failure. Often a failure causes the event alarm system to fail before the alarm can even be registered.
Some prior art devices also allow for the power to be remotely controlled, such as U.S. Pat. No. 5,404,541 Hirosawa. The prior art patents cited above are all incorporated by reference herein. There are also other devices such as the Intel N44OBX and T44OBX server boards which allow for the power and the reset to be initiated through a land based modem line. These devices have the drawback that if the phone line is not accessible or no power is available to the machine or modem, then no diagnosis may be made. The Intel device is not independent of the motherboard power and it focuses on BIOS diagnostics and does not provide for interactive trouble shooting of the system""s operating system or other higher level services such as the network or TCP/IP connectivity (Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol). Such a device is a limited tool for diagnosing problems remotely
Accordingly, it would be an improvement over the state of the art to provide a new apparatus and method for remotely monitoring and accessing a computer which is independent from the host computer""s power, and includes independent, robust access and diagnostics.
It is an object of the present invention to provide an independent computing device for diagnosing and repairing a host computer.
It is another object of the present invention to provide an independent computing device for diagnosing a host microcomputer when no power is supplied to the host computer.
It is another object of the present invention to provide an independent computing device for independent diagnosis and recovery when the software or hardware of the host computer is not operating properly.
It is yet another object of the present invention to provide an independent computing device for independent diagnosis and recovery when a land based telecommunications line or local area network connection is not operating properly.
This invention is a remote maintenance device for monitoring and controlling a host computer and its operating system. The device allows a remote administrator the same functionality as if they were sitting at the host""s console. The device is fully independent of the host computer""s hardware and peripherals (including local power, network, and telephony) and fully independent of the host operating system and BIOS. The remote maintenance device uses a wireless modem (GSM) or wireless IP (packet) interface to provide commands from a remote technician to the host computer. The wireless communication link also transfers output or display data to the remote technician who can then diagnose and repair problems. Because of an onboard battery, the host computer may be reset and the power toggled on and off without affecting the maintenance device""s operation. The maintenance device accesses the host""s operating system and BIOS via serial ports and similar communication connections.
Host system monitoring includes connecting to and capturing: temperature sensors, fan speed sensors, voltage sensors, serial port I/O for low-level text and IP access to the BIOS, the operating system, keyboard/video capture and control, LAN access for testing local connectivity, secondary xe2x80x9cback doorxe2x80x9d IP access, and other peripherals. The present invention is totally unaffected by the failure of the CPU, motherboard, power supply, physical room power, UPS power availability, host software, or the network. In addition, the maintenance device interfaces with (but is not affected by) I/O cards, external network switches, routers, gateways, and hubs, local physical Internet, telephony lines, and various adapter cards. Separate operating software is used to operate the independent maintenance device which isolates it from any software problems on the host computer.
The presently preferred embodiment of the invention is a remote maintenance computing device for monitoring and controlling the host computer""s hardware and operating system. The device includes communication interfaces for the host computer and a microprocessor coupled to the host computer""s communication interfaces to monitor the host. A wireless communication connection is coupled to the microprocessor to transmit data regarding the present state of the host computer""s hardware and software. An independent, possibly continuously recharging, power source is wired to the microprocessor and wireless communication connection. A remote receiver or remote computer receives the data transmitted by the wireless communication connection and transmits commands to the microprocessor through the wireless communication connection.